Tim Tebow is in Coach Prime’s corner.
The Heisman Trophy winner expressed to Fox News Digital in a recent interview he's a big fan of what Deion Sanders is doing as head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes. Sanders has Colorado undefeated through the first three games of the season.
And as support grows, so too does the number of critics who have scrutinized the way he’s built the team and how boisterous he’s been.
But Tebow said that’s how Sanders is as long as he’s known him. He said Sanders is the same person when the lights are off as he is when they’re on, and he’s shown how much he cares.
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"Well, I’ve been friends with (Deion) for quite a while now since, honestly, the end of college or early time in the NFL," Tebow said. "He was just so encouraging, so supportive, so kind. Always gave me words of encouragement or words of wisdom. And, honestly, he would go out of his way to do it in a very nice way. Not just like when cameras are there doing it but behind the scenes.
"We actually got to do an event together last year, and it’s just … he loves people. He cares about people. At this event, he went out of his way for a while to answer questions, encourage people, care for people. I hope people understand that it’s not just done when the cameras are there. It’s also done behind the scenes, and he cares about people.
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"He really, really genuinely cares about people, and I think that’s contagious. I think you see it in his players. I think you see it in his coaches. I think you see it in the people when they’ve been around him. They see it, and then you want to be around people like that — people that care, people with passion, people with enthusiasm for life, for their sport. That’s something that’s always been contagious to me."
Tebow said he loves the unique approach to coaching, adding Sanders genuinely tries to turn boys into men through football.
But as Sanders' popularity grows at Colorado, the pull of the NFL is going to be there too.
Dallas Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones already lauded Sanders as a "hell of a coach." Whether an NFL team eventually comes calling is likely still a few years away.
Tebow said Sanders could "probably" be on a path to the NFL or a different school, but it will come down to some introspection and what Sanders wants for himself.
"I would say what is his heart’s desire? Is it to stay? It is to go to another school? Is it to go to the NFL? I think he could probably have offers to do a lot of different things. But I would encourage him to, like he always would, just follow his heart and what that means," he told Fox News Digital.
"I love the excitement that he’s having in Boulder and in Colorado. I was just there the last two days, not on campus, but in Colorado, and they always had passionate fans, especially for the Broncos. But how excited they were for the CU game this weekend and I know it’s a rivalry and in-state schools, but they love it. They’re passionate about it. I think he’s building a fan base. I think he’s letting them be passionate about Colorado like they were when I was young in like my early days."
Tebow, who spoke to Fox News Digital on behalf of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, said he remembers what Colorado was back in the 1990s with Rashaan Salaam, Kordell Stewart and Michael Westbrook.
"I think he could build an amazing place and do it his way. So, whatever his heart desires. But I kind of love the excitement that he’s created there."
